Miami-based collector and filmmaker Dennis Scholl is simply eclectic in his tastes and pursuits. Scholl’s latest endeavor – as an artist – is an exhibition at the Hua International gallery in Berlin (The Texture of My Memory, until 18 Match) which features “nearly 20 works created from acquired cultural ephemera which are arranged in the shape of a dodecagon,” a statement read. These circular compositions are made of all sorts of fascinating props such as the original royalty statements for songs written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney that date back to 1971. “I found these ledger statements at an auction of “historical ephemera. in half and carefully glued back together in such a way that the tears are barely noticeable. I wonder if anyone fished them out of the trash! It’s an incredible piece of music history and when you consider the amounts, they remind us of the long history of artists being under-rewarded for their work,” says Scholl.
Another work is made from 12 vintage Hermès scarves while a set of love letters written by a bride to her Union captain (and future husband) during the American Civil War forms the basis of another makeshift murals. So is it about turning memories and forgotten memories into art? “While the objects already have intrinsic value, I try to reassign them a new value by viewing and presenting them as works of art. This in turn allows the preservation and resuscitation of archival material, but also to reinvent its very shape”, explains Scholl.
